Play 11


Julien Gets Acting Lessons at the Bar


Brigette and Julien sit at a crowded loud bar

Brigette: Remind me your name

Julien: Julien

Brigette: yes yes yes, Julien... and that guy, he's Julien too, right?

Julien: Right

Brigette: And you guys are from Michigan, right

Julien: Yeah yeah!

Brigette: Haha that's awesome, well it's awesome to see you guys

Julien: Yeah for sure

Brigette: dude, last time I met you, you were doing some music video, right?

Julien: Oh yeah yeah, we did the whole thing, a whole video and stuff

Brigette: I remember talking to you about acting, I mean how was it, how did it go? How'd you feel about it?

Julien: Well acting is kinda crazy

Brigette: No shit man, acting is insane

Julien: And it was hard trying to figure out if I was doing something as a character in the video or being myself or what

Brigette: Oh for sure, that's actually a super hard thing to figure out, like a weird balance to comprehend

Julien: Totally

Brigette: I was once in this show actually, where I wanted to play this character how I had figured out this character to be... and like it was great, it was funny, I thought I was doing a really good job, and my director-who understands comedy better than just about any one I've ever encountered- stops me after rehearsal one day and says... Brigette, you have to stop acting

Julien: Haha what, are you serious?

Brigette: And I was like what do you mean? And he said, what you're doing.... yeah, I get it, it's funny, okay... but when you're just sitting in my office bitching about something, you're so much more funny. So just stop acting. Be yourself. And it was super hard for me because I felt like I had no character. So a friend of mine who was the assistant director gave me this brilliant piece of advice, because I thought I was just on stage doing nothing, not acting... she told me to give myself a physical tick... something that noone would ever notice, but by doing it, I felt transported into the character. And I could do everything the way I had been doing it, but by having this tick, I felt like I wasn't just myself, but my character

Julien: Man, that's nuts

Brigette: For sure, but that's the stuff you gotta do as an actor because you just get in your head all the time and it's just over and ove-

Julien: Do a scene

Brigette: What

Julien: Do a scene

Brigette: Oh, I, don't what...

Julien: You show up home and your husband bought a brand new red ferrari

Beat

Brigette: What, what, um, WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!?!? Why is that here? That's not..we can't afford that! What the fuck is that? It's kinda beautiful tho.. I was just thinking the other day about what it would mean to have a red sports car but... that's not, honey! HONEY! What the fuck is that? That's a ferrari, isn't it? That's, how could, you uh,

Julien: Ya know honey, sometimes ya just gotta take care of business

Brigette: What?

Julien: I just do what I do... I thought you'd like it

Brigette: Well I do like it, it's gorgeous, I just don't see how you went about just making that decision... I'm not even mad, not mad at all actually... I just want, I just don't know

Julien: Ya know, sometimes I'm gonna be taking care of you

Brigette: Why do you spoil me

Julien: Why not baby

Brigette: I can't believe that's ours!

Beat

Brigette: And that's a scene...

Julien: that was fun!

Brigette: Yeah, I know